Mayor Mel Lastman will proclaim April 2 to 8, 2001 Refugee Rights Awareness
Week. An event sponsored by a coalition of refugee service providers and
advocacy groups in collaboration with the City's Access and Equity Unit will
take place on Wednesday, April 4 at Metro Hall (rotunda).

Participating agencies include the Canadian Centre for Victims of Torture,
Catholic Cross Cultural Services, City of Toronto, Eelam Tamil Information
Centre of Toronto, Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants (OCASI),
Toronto Refugee Affairs Council, Working Group on Refugee Resettlement.

The first Refugee Rights Day was on April 4, 1985, when the Supreme Court of
Canada released its first decision about refugees based on the Canadian
Constitution. The Singh decision recognized that refugee claimants are entitled
to protection under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the right
to an oral hearing, which is a fundamental principle of justice.